I understand that my text has been mentioned on this newsgroup. I wouldlike to provide some information to those who might be interested.

Below is a LaTeX source file of a letter that I have begun sendingto some colleagues around the country. Please note the commentsby Professor Hettmansperger and that my book was reviewed in the May, 1995, issue of _The American Statistician_.

The letter mentions a guest editorial in UMAP; it appeared in theSpring 1995 issue. I can make it available electronically ormail it you if you have an interest. (UMAP has given me permissionto use the editorial, and Prof Hettmansperger did the same; I amnot comfortable with distributing the TAS review---reviews are not created as ads, I simply mention its existance.)

I certainly do not want to cast any aspersions on Brown Publishing. The people I worked with their were very helpful and Brown was fair in the settlement of my inventory. The rest is just the modus operandi of large corporations.

I would be most happy to do whatever I can to make my book a success for you. I will be distributing the book myself with the help of my family. One big bonus to your students is thatI will be able to offer the text at a price that is substantiallylower than the publisher's wholesale price.

I am writing to you about my textbook, {\em Statistics: Learning in the Presence of Variation}that was published by William C. Brown, copyright 1995.

Professor T. P. Hettmansperger of the Department of Statisticsat Pennsylvania State University has used my textbook in hiscourse, and writes,\begin{quote}The text {\em Statistics: Learning in the Presence of Variation}by RobertWardrop is unique among elementary statistics texts. Virtually all textsavailable (with the exception of the present text) follow a standardformula which has been in vogue for over 30 years. Wardrop's text breaksthis mold in the best possible way. His book approaches the subject ofstatistics more like a user would approach the subject. Inference isintroduced immediately (not after 300 pages as is typical) and iscontinuously reinforced throughout the book. The students are taught tothink statistically rather than taught how to apply formulas. This book iswell written and is the most refreshing new text to appear on the scene formany years.\end{quote}

If Professor Hettmansperger's comments stir your interest inmy text, you might want to examine the enclosed guest editorialthat appeared in {\em The Journal of Undergraduate Mathematicsand Its Applications}. In addition, a very comprehensive reviewof my text appeared in the May, 1995, issue of {\em The AmericanStatistician}, on pages~237--238. Finally, if you want to learnmore about my text, or simply want to hear about my approach toteaching introductory statistics, I would be very happy to tryto arrange to give a colloquium talk in your department.(I will not need anyfinancial support from you to give a talk.)

In early April of this year I received a letter from the CEO ofW.C. Brown. The letter stated that Brown was discontinuing itsmathematics line, and went on to say,\begin{quote} Between now and May 31, you, your new publisher, or a selected agent of yours is free to negotiate purchase of your title's inventory. After May 31, WCBP will destroy the inventory.\end{quote}Forced to act quickly, I decided to purchase 4,000 copies of mytext and handle its distribution, with the help of my family.

I will be handling the distribution of my book out of my home.My home address is\begin{quote} Bob Wardrop

5573 Kupfer Road

Waunakee, WI 53597\end{quote}and my home phone number is (608) 849-6819 (call collect). Pleasecontact me if you need an examination copy of the text. If you adoptthe text, please give my address to your bookstore and let me know how manycopies of the text that you will need for your teaching assistant(s)or grader(s).

This summer I will be revising the optional {\em Student Solutions Manual}supplement to the text, tobe ready by August 1. I am excited about this revision. I wasrushed to write the original manual, and there are several waysit can be improved. In particular, I will provide more study tipsand extra review questions for each chapter. As a final bonus,without the need to help support the myriad employees of a largepublishing company, the manual will have a very reasonable selling price.

Please feel free to pass this information along to other instructors,as appropriate.